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♪♪
-Man #1: As the Delta flight taxis to the gate,
there is an anticipation of arrival.
In the midst of passengers wearing Madras shirts
and Brooks Brothers gray suits, there is this, "Prime Time."
-Man #2: He has never seen a talent in this league
like Deion Sanders.
Well, we asked Sanders about that quote,
and this was his response.
[ Chuckling ] And that is "Prime Time" Deion Sanders.
-Madden: He is a great cover corner,
maybe the best that ever played this game.
I think he'd make a heck of an anything.
I think he could be a receiver.
He's a great punt returner, a great kick returner,
baseball player, base stealer, hitter, whatever you want.
-He's got Rickey Henderson-type leadoff abilities and power,
and someday, he's gonna hit 20 home runs.
-Man #3: There's the 1-0.
A fly ball deep to right field!
-Man #4: I mean, comes a point where the yin and the yang,
the baseball and the football, are gonna be so strong
that it might not be possible to have that pull
and that tug from both sides.
-Man #5: He's gonna be...
out at the plate.
-Man #6: Deion Sanders back to two sports,
playing football on Sundays
and baseball when the schedule permits.
-Very few people could ever pull this off. Go for it.
It's an American dream, playing both sports
within a 24-hour span.
-Man #7: This afternoon, Deion Sanders announced
that he will play football tomorrow in Miami
for the Falcons.
-He's chosen to leave, so we'll hope
that he'll get back in time for the game tomorrow.
-Has he broken a deal with you,
and are you aggravated with him?
-Sanders: This 24 hours should've been joyous, phenomenal,
exhilarating, exciting, tremendous, captivating...
but it wasn't.
-Don't crowd him. -Back up, people.
-Sanders: And the one thing that bothers me is people say
Prime played two sports in one day.
I didn't.
I suited up for two sports in one day.
♪♪
Let's do this, baby. Well overdue.
♪♪
-Ludacris: Listen up, people. We only have an hour.
[ Whip cracks ]
Allow me to introduce Mr. Deion Sanders,
alter ego, Prime Time.
-Profession... -[ Ting! ]
...that's the point of this story.
Remember October 11th, 1992?
No? Well, let me remind you.
It was the night of the first three-way presidential debate
in American history, Clinton, Bush, Perot.
But for a certain high-school sophomore
and up-and-coming rapper living in Atlanta, Georgia,
that's me, by the way, Chris Bridges, alter ego Ludacris,
the real history was being made by one of our own.
Deion Sanders was trying to become the first man
to play both professional baseball
and professional football in the same day,
for the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Falcons.
It started over here in Pittsburgh
on Saturday night,
October 10th.
Deion played in Game 4
of the National League Championship Series
against the Pirates, then flew overnight to Miami,
played football against the Dolphins at 1:00 p.m. Sunday,
then flew back to Pittsburgh
for Game 5 of the NLCS that same night.
You got it? Good.
Give the man his sunglasses, and listen close.
-You got to understand...
see, I saw this.
This started when I was 7.
I told my mama, "I'm gonna make a lot of money.
You never gonna have to work another day of your life."
And an agent, my sophomore year in college,
handed me this paperwork,
and I saw how much everyone made in the NFL,
and I was highly disappointed
that my position was one of the least-paid.
Right then and there, in that dormitory room,
I created what you know as "Prime Time."
Oh, baby, you love him, you hate him, but guess what.
You had to see him play.
-Announcer: Now it'll be Deion Sanders from the 24.
In the middle. Twists his way, finds an alley!
Now it's just the hurry and outrun it!
It's gonna be a touchdown, Florida State!
-All right, Brent, one of the happiest men in the South
right here, Deion Sanders, getting congratulations from his teammates.
I said, "You know, what was it like?"
He said, "Pat, it's Prime Time and about time."
So, back to you. [ Laughs ]
-When you're that big a star in college,
your persona is that you're special.
There was nobody else named Prime Time.
-Announcer: With his name up in lights, Prime Time.
-And Prime was Prime.
But when it was time for baseball...
you got Deion.
♪♪
I couldn't be Prime.
The game didn't call for that.
Even to this day, I would not sign "Prime" on a baseball.
You just gonna get a signature on a baseball
'cause that's all I was.
Just Deion alone couldn't fulfill the obligations
of what he promised his mama.
But Prime?
Baby, he is all that and then some.
Understood? The difference between Deion...
and Prime.
When you see Michael Jackson wearing that glove,
you think he sit around the house
with that glove on all day?
-No, he don't. -[ Laughter ]
That's what I'm saying.
-Ludacris: In 1988, Deion was drafted by the Yankees.
In '89, Prime Time was drafted by the Falcons.
-This is your mom sitting next to you.
You said, "She's my very rich mom."
I don't think there's any doubt about that.
-No more sales. No more nothing now.
We get that big house we always wanted.
We get everything we want now.
-Ludacris: At this point, Deion became
a full-time football player with the Falcons,
only playing baseball until joining NFL training camp in August.
Now, that's the opposite of Mr. Bo Jackson,
the world's other two-sport pro athlete.
He was a full-time baseball player
who only switched from the Royals to the Raiders
once baseball season was over in October.
-Man: What about Bo? You as good as Bo?
-I'm not gonna say if I'm as good as Bo.
I'm not say if Bo as good as me.
-Announcer #1: Bo is there! Get up that wall!
-Announcer #2: Bangs through Bosworth!
Touchdown, Raiders!
-Deion Sanders is probably one of the main reasons
that I played as hard as I did.
My most memorable moment was when he was with the Yankees.
Everybody wanted to know what Bo was gonna do, what Deion was gonna do.
-Announcer: Hit well to center field.
Deion Sanders going back to the wall.
And it is gone! Bo Jackson homers.
-After 3 at bats, I had 3 home runs and 7 "ribbies."
Deion comes up the very next half-inning and hit a rope.
-Announcer: Nailed to center field.
Bo Jackson going over. Beats him! Can't get it.
-Went off the tip of my glove,
and it rolled through the crack,
but when I hit the ground,
I dislocated my left shoulder.
♪♪
And I rolled over.
I looked up to see where he was because I said,
"This cat gonna get a 'inside-the-park.'"
-Announcer: Tabler goes over to get the ball, plays it in.
They're waving him home.
The throw to the plate. Gets on by!
Sanders flies over, and now he is...
safe at home!
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
-I always say, "Bo and I hit four home runs that day."
[ Laughs ]
-Ludacris: Deion the baseball player
became a free agent in 1991,
and who happened to be looking for a utility outfielder
with blazing speed?
The Atlanta Braves.
If you gonna play two sports, why not do it in the same town?
♪ Are you ready? ♪
[ Rapping ] ♪ Ladies and gentlemen... ♪
-Man: Sanders getting plenty of recognition
from opposing pitchers, leading his league
in four different offensive categories,
including a .447 batting average.
-Sanders: I'm coming 'round second, baby's in the gap.
And ain't nothing like sliding to third base, safely.
[ Rapping ] ♪ Well, I'm the Real one, yes, the Phuncky Feel One ♪
♪ Cypress Hill has come, any questions, ask them ♪
♪ You got to relax, he got to kick back ♪
♪ Brothers, just sit back, enjoy me like a six-pack ♪
♪ As I let the rhyme flow into the hook, yo ♪
♪ Where you gettin' took, well, that's another story, black ♪
♪ 'Cause I'm the Real one, yes, the Phuncky Feel One ♪
♪ I'm the Real one, yes, the Phuncky Feel One ♪
♪ You know I'm the Real one, yes, the Phuncky Feel One ♪
-Man: This was supposed to be Deion Sanders' final game
before reporting to the Falcons' training camp.
Watch the style in which he left.
-Announcer: 1-2. Drilled deep toward right field,
putting it back toward that wall.
That ball is out of here!
Deion has got it tonight.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Ludacris: Not a bad way to end your 1991 baseball season,
take a curtain call with the Braves
and move on to the Falcons.
But then outfielder and leadoff man Otis Nixon
was suspended for a drug violation,
and the Braves were suddenly short two outfielders.
Introducing John Schuerholz,
Braves general manager, Hall of Famer, dynasty builder.
-He had an idea. -[ Pop! ]
What if a certain Atlanta Falcon could return to the Braves
for just a few weeks in September?
We're talking about playing both sports simultaneously,
something Bo Jackson never did.
-Now, where's that Tour de France thing?
-As a matter of courtesy, our organization wanted
to be sure that the Falcons heard from us
before they heard from anyone else,
and we simply shared with them what had transpired,
that Deion wanted to come back for the Braves,
with the Braves,
the Braves wanted him back,
and in fact we were able to work that out.
-Announcer: One day after being named the NFC's
Defensive Player of the Week for his part in a win over the Raiders,
Sanders was back in a baseball uniform.
His presence, not to mention his speed,
seemed to give the Braves a huge burst of energy
when it was needed most.
-Don't want to get too drunk.
-You coming next to me, "D"? You gonna come next to me?
-Man: I thought his coach might be a bit put off
by Sanders' sudden desire to split times
between the two sports, but Jerry Glanville is all for it.
-If I had that athletic ability and was capable of doing
what he's gonna do and somebody asked me to do it,
I know me, I'd do it.
-Man: Jerry. What's the steal sign?
[ Laughs ]
-That it?
Nobody in the Falcons was not on his side.
He really enjoyed competing,
and I think he wanted to help the city
in both places.
-Ludacris: Deion practiced with the Falcons during the day,
but helped the Braves chase the pennant at night
by playing in home games Monday through Friday.
-Announcer: Practice ended at 3:30.
The Braves' doubleheader started at 4:10.
Can you say "running late," boys and girls?
-Deion, are you worried at all about time?
-Nah, he ain't worried. He ain't worried. He ain't worried.
-Sanders: If you live in Atlanta, you know that traffic is crazy down 85.
How is this gonna work?
Somebody offered a helicopter.
[ Helicopter blades whirring ]
I never said, "Hey, I need a helicopter.
Hey, anybody got a helicopter?"
-"Yeah, we're gonna run the sprints.
You go ahead and catch the helicopter down, yeah.
Okay, I'll see you down at the game later on, yeah."
[ Sighs, chuckles ]
-I'll tell you, I do remember that.
I've covered professional athletes for 40 years,
and, to the average fan,
they would be shocked at how much pettiness,
how much envy goes on between teammates.
[ Crowd cheering ]
And so, when you have somebody doing something like, you know,
taking a helicopter to a game,
these are the type of things that explode a locker room.
-Deion, how was that ride?
-And the management of the Falcons and the Braves
to a certain extent, they were letting him get away with this.
-Hey, is that your first helicopter ride?
-That's my first helicopter ride.
I always wanted to jump out a plane, but never did.
-Announcer: Deion Sanders to pinch-run at first base for Mark Lemke.
Sanders just back on the roster
and gets a standing ovation here at Fulton County Stadium.
♪♪
Runner goes. Swing and a miss.
Throw to second. Not in time.
Deion Sanders is at second base.
[ Cheers and applause ]
♪♪
-It wasn't a sideshow.
He was a weapon.
Like, it would've been on any team's best interest
to try to make this happen,
that didn't sacrifice one or the other.
-He was a football player and a baseball player from word "go,"
so we knew always that he was a part of both of those teams.
-Ludacris: So, that was 1991.
Deion helped the Braves make the postseason for the first time
in nine years and also helped the Falcons
make the playoffs for the first time in nine years.
All was right in my City of Atlanta.
And that brings us to 1992,
which is what this film is really all about
[chuckles] and where the drama really starts.
-Man: He's still under a football contract this year.
Do you expect him to leave on July 31st?
-Well, that is the contract we've written.
The contract that we have in place has him under contract
and provides his services to us through July 31st.
That's the agreement we entered with him
at the beginning of the season.
So, if he leaves, that's with our understanding.
We'd prefer that we were able to work out a situation
where he would stay, but we clearly knew
going into this situation that the other contract did exist
and that he might very well decide to leave on August the 1st.
-Ludacris: Deion stuck around, not with a reworked contract,
but with a handshake deal.
-Deion Sanders, All-Pro cornerback,
is back to two sports, playing football on Sundays
and baseball when the schedule permits,
but Braves' postseason will take priority over the Falcons.
-Schuerholz: His agent gave me his assurance that Deion would
remain with the Braves for the remainder of the year
and would in fact be here for all postseason games,
playoff and World Series, should we be in them,
and so, for all intents and purposes,
we'll have Deion for the remainder of the year
as a full-time baseball player.
-Ludacris: And here's the crux of the problem.
What does "full time" mean?
Well, it depends on who you ask.
-Barnes: And our understanding of full time did not mean
that he would not play football.
That was never the understanding.
His commitment wasn't "I will sit in my hotel room
and do nothing else in between games."
-John Schuerholz said that he had told us
that he was fully committed to baseball
and that that was his one and only top of the mind,
that's where his focus was.
And then, all of a sudden, football season came,
and Deion's attention was diverted and he was a Falcon.
-The Braves are willing to share Deion in September
if they can have him full time for the postseason.
Deion would miss two Falcon games.
Game 5 of the NLCS would be
on October the 11th.
Game 2 of the World Series
would take place on October 18.
-I supposed to be playing football right now,
contractually,
and I'm not fulfilling my obligations.
Baseball is getting a bonus right now
because I don't even have a contract,
but I'm not gonna miss because, just in case they need me,
I want to be there for my guys over here, too.
So, now the story of my life, I'm torn.
Real talk.
And it wasn't easy.
Emotionally, it wasn't easy,
because I've always separated the two internally.
I've always said, "Okay, when I'm playing football,
I'm playing football.
Don't ask me no baseball questions.
I don't want to hear nothing about no baseball.
That's a wrap."
When I'm playing baseball, don't ask me
nothing 'bout no football.
So, I always had those rules, those personal rules,
that I abided by, but now there's a dilemma.
-Ludacris: So, damn the torpedoes...
Deion Sanders was gonna try to play two sports in one day.
But in October of '92,
Prime couldn't whip out his phone to book flights
or get football cleats delivered to his hotel room,
so he called his sponsors at Nike.
-Man: I mean, you talk about a real hot dog.
This guy is uno number one.
-Scearce: I met Deion at Nike Foot Locker Slam Fest in '91.
He made quite an impression on me.
He just had an aura about him, an irreverence.
-Man: Look at him with the hat on! I mean, lampshade time!
-Scearce: I was a Nike athlete marketing manager,
had one of the best jobs in the world.
-Man: I think the hat covered his eyes!
The lights go out in Georgia!
-Scearce: So, he had a game Saturday night in Pittsburgh
with the Braves, and then he had a 1:00 p.m. game
on Sunday with the Falcons in Miami,
and then he had a game back in Pittsburgh with the Braves.
We did decide we wanted to support him,
and he was very surprised and appreciative,
and it was quite an endeavor to pull off,
so I don't know how he thought he was going to do it,
but it became less of a concern for him
to pull off the logistics of it.
-Man: Deion was off and running tonight here in Pittsburgh,
but he better save some of that energy
because tonight it's baseball,
tomorrow afternoon, it will be NFL football.
He told Stan Kasten, the Braves president,
that about 2:30 this afternoon,
and you get the feeling Braves management
isn't crazy about the idea.
-All of us, management and players alike,
are focused on playing the games,
and that's really all we're gonna talk about
or care to talk about.
-I remember this like yesterday.
I picked up the phone in the hotel, and I called Deion.
And to his credit, he was very straight with me.
He said, "Yes, Stan, I'm gonna do it."
And I told him, "Deion, you are making a huge mistake,"
and I harangued him for a little while,
and he wound up hanging up on me.
And I called him back, and he wouldn't answer the phone.
-Announcer: I think Deion's doing a rather self-centered thing,
-Tim, going there tomorrow. -McCarver: Absolutely.
You know, there's been a lot of talk
that he's a consummate team player for the Atlanta Braves,
and if he's that, how can he leave in the playoffs?
-Tim McCarver,
he allowed his buddy, John Schuerholz,
to...
pour poison down his throat,
and he regurgitated it
over to a national audience.
-Has he broken a deal with you, and are you aggravated with him?
-Well, at least an understanding.
It wasn't a written deal, but we talked about the issue
of his being with us full time during the playoffs
and World Series, and our feeling of full time
meant every minute of every day.
-I mean, he was pissed off.
-He's chosen to leave, so we'll hope
that he'll get back in time for the game tomorrow.
-I don't think that the general manager thought,
when he was setting his rosters for an opportunity
to play for the World Series, that Deion was gonna run off
and play in a football game, be in peril in a football game,
perhaps get hurt in a football game,
and then not be available to the Braves.
-McDonough: Much has been made about his shoe contract
being contingent upon his playing both sports.
If he plays both, it's been reported he makes $1 million.
If he chooses one or the other,
it goes all the way down to $100,000.
-Announcer: Yeah, but, I mean, why should the income
from the shoe contracts take precedence
over the allegiance to the ball club?
I think that's where the question is.
-It shouldn't. -The way I look at that,
that is just flat wrong.
This could be possibly construed as a breach of contract.
-Well, this is kind of my Deion file that I had.
So, it was my job as his point person
to let everyone at Nike know what his plans were.
I had written an e-mail on September 10th, '92,
saying that Deion was officially practicing and playing football
with the Falcons as his priority
for the remainder of the month of September.
"However, when the Braves begin their postseason playoff games,
Deion will focus strictly on baseball throughout playoffs
and the World Series, as well, if they take it that far."
Man: Strictly? That sounds like he won't be leaving."
But this is not a contract with the Braves.
This is his communication of his plans to Nike, so we will know.
-Let me clear this up, ladies and gentlemen.
Get your remote right now.
Turn your TV up 'cause this is real.
I'ma give you time to get it.
You got it? Okay.
My baseball contract went to until July the 31st,
and it was a wrap.
I never in my life
told the Atlanta Braves
that I would not play football.
Football was never discussed.
I never gave the Atlanta Braves my word
that I wouldn't do something like it,
because it was never discussed.
I said, "I will be a Brave full time."
Full time, just like everyone have a full-time job,
you work on that job from point A to point B.
After that job is over, you do what you want to do.
I was considered a football player after July the 31st.
We in October, man.
I been on the Braves because I want to be.
I have no contract.
I've been with the Atlanta Braves
since July the 31st on my own.
And last year, throughout chasing the pennant,
he called me to come over.
-Man: He being?
-John Schuerholz called me over
to come help his team win a pennant.
I said, "Yeah, fine. No problem."
Was I a full-time football player at that time?
It just seem like, when things are turned around,
they get all... it gets crazy.
-Ludacris: Okay, so that's Deion's side.
Kind of makes you want to hear
what the Braves have to say, right?
Yeah, I don't blame you, but, unfortunately,
Braves manager Bobby Cox declined to be interviewed,
same goes for the GM, John Schuerholz.
Even after more than two decades,
people still have really strong feelings about Deion.
-I am sick and tired of this, and so is Deion.
Believe me, there is no distraction
whatsoever with this ball club, none whatsoever.
We're happy for Deion.
We hopes he goes out there and kicks Miami's butt
and comes back here and helps us to win tomorrow, also.
-Man: Will you guys watch the game at home?
-Oh, definitely, sir. Are you kidding?
-Ludacris: In Game 4, Deion's strikeout
was his only highlight, lowlight, any light.
But the Braves won to go up 3-1 in the series,
and Deion was on his way to Miami.
-Scearce: Normally, if we had something we were doing at Nike,
like a product launch,
there would be so much planning months in advance.
This wasn't our plan.
We just did it.
We didn't have our PR person involved.
We didn't have a statement.
We really were just helping Deion accomplish
this goal of his.
-Coming through. Step aside.
-There was confusion because, apparently,
there's two airports in Pittsburgh,
and our charter flight was at a different airport.
So, I needed to get the airplane to where we [chuckles] were.
-Man: Good luck tomorrow, Deion.
-Announcer: Final score of Game 4
of the National League Championship Series,
the Atlanta Braves, 6, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4.
-And there was quite a team of us for that first flight.
Deion's agent, Eugene Parker, was there and his fiance,
Carolyn, his daughter Deiondra.
And then Pat O'Brien was there with his crew,
which was quite a surprise for me.
-I always put myself in the story.
And so, when Deion walked, I walked next to him.
And guys would say, "Pat, get out of the way!
Get out of the way!" and I'd say,
"Get your own interview with Deion Sanders,
not gonna use mine."
I was such a...
What's another word for "prick"?
Um...
What's another word for "prick"?
-Pat O'Brien was cool, man. He was suave.
He walked the walk. He talked the talk.
He understood me.
So, when he inquired about making the trip,
"Cool, Pat. Come on, man. We got room.
We have a private plane. Nobody on here. Let's go."
Kids dream of things like this,
playing two sports, fantasizing.
-O'Brien: Did you dream of this?
-I'm a kid still.
-O'Brien: CBS Sports, they weren't dumb.
They wanted Deion Sanders on their television.
We were everywhere. We're on the plane with him,
we took a nap together, different couches.
And when a player gives you that kind of access,
they're doing it for themselves as well as for you.
Somebody said last night that you were selfish.
-Ooh! If I was selfish,
I don't think I would be trying to pull this off,
-to help both teams win. -Right.
I can't remember if I was using him, or he was using me.
Here's something I thought I'd never say to you.
-What's that? -Good night.
-Oh, yeah. -[ Laughs ]
Sleep tight. Don't let the Dolphins bite.
-See you in the morning.
♪♪
Feel like putting the pads on?
-Tell you what... Mama said there'd be days,
but she didn't say nothing like this.
[ Laughs ]
♪♪
-Scearce: We all stayed at the team hotel that night
and slept for a few hours.
I was feeling conflicted at this point,
after Pat O'Brien being on the flight with us,
about the media coverage,
and so I talked to Deion about it when I gave him his cleats.
I said, "I'm concerned this is gonna look like an event
this weekend that was orchestrated by Nike
or that was something you did for Nike."
And Deion wasn't concerned about it.
He's like, "I'm so pleased to have the support logistically,"
and the covering of the cost for him to do it.
He wasn't concerned about it at that time,
but I didn't sleep well that night.
I was starting to feel worried about that.
-What could be more American than playing baseball one night,
football the next day,
and making $100,000 extra on your paycheck?
John Schuerholz of the Braves told me,
"We just hope we get Deion back in one piece."
The coach of the Atlanta Falcons told me earlier today
he'd love to see him come down in a helicopter,
and Jerry Glanville said, "And run one back,
how pretty would that be?"
-Sanders: So, the Falcon was like,
"Hey, man, do what you got to do.
Long as we winning, we straight."
Not winning in football,
but long as we bring it back to the city.
That was the Falcons' mentality because this is a city,
a city that's trying to win something.
When I walked on that bus, man,
and my teammates seen me,
and they put two and two together,
They say, "We just seen this dude on TV last night,
and he's here... for us?"
They stood up
and gave me a standing ovation.
And I slowly looked as many of them in the eyes as I could,
and I dropped my head...
and tears came streaming down my face.
One of my greatest moments in sports.
♪♪
-Glanville: He hasn't been with us all week,
doesn't know the game plan, has not practiced.
So, I shocked the team,
I said, "Deion, "I'm not starting you."
-Announcer: Bruce Pickens starts ahead of Sanders
since Deion did not practice this week.
-Everybody looked at me like, "Are you nuts?"
And I said, "But stand right next to me."
I punished him for one play.
After one play, I said, "Now you can go play."
-Announcer: It's interesting talking to the Falcons yesterday.
Most of them really were out of the mix
as to whether Deion would even be here for this game.
-Rison: We just didn't want him on our team,
we needed him on our team, as well.
And he would show up as though he'd been there every day.
"I know you been missing me, baby.
I know you been missing me.
I'm back. I'm back. I'm back, but just for a second."
[ Laughs ]
"I got to go try to hit this curveball."
-Pendleton: When he was on, we were in front of that screen
because, first of all, we want him to have success.
The other thing was we wanted to have something
to get after him about if he didn't have success.
-Announcer: Deion Sanders is the receiver at the top of the screen.
And they're coming his way.
-Sanders: So, hold on. Hold on.
You mean to tell me I'm playing two sports on one day,
and I played both ways on the same day?
Boy, Prime was bad.
Oh, boy. Hey!
I played two sports on one day in both ways in the same game.
Y'all hear that?!
Boy, your boy was bad.
-Announcer: Marino under center.
"I" formation for the Dolphins. Play-action.
Almost intercepted by Sanders.
-Glanville: Did he play like he would've played if he'd been with us?
No.
Was he still better than everybody else on the field?
Yes. He never got pass-interference calls...
and he got a pass-interference call.
And we all went, "Wow."
-Ludacris: Deion called it a day after one catch,
two kickoff returns, one punt return,
one Falcons loss,
and two I.V. bags in the postgame locker room.
-Kasten: His departure was delayed because he'd gotten dehydrated.
I remember thinking, "Oh, this is not a good development.
Can he even play now?"
-Moore: So, when I'm sitting there
in my hotel room in Pittsburgh watching Deion,
what he didn't do in Miami,
because it was an underwhelming game,
I really felt that this was
gonna be a turning point
because of the circus.
This is a very disruptive thing.
All the national media, all the local media
is concentrating on this, and here are the Braves
trying to concentrate on trying
to beat Barry Bonds.
-Sanders: I could remember
just sitting in the shower
and just tears of like,
"Why, man?"
You ever bust your butt for somebody,
and they don't appreciate it, man?
You ever give somebody all you got,
and they just toot their nose up and keep on walking?
So, you have no idea how much I wanted to tell that pilot,
"Just take this left to Atlanta, man. I'm good." [ Laughs ]
But...
once you start something, you finish it.
-If it's a Sunday afternoon,
then it must be baseball... I mean football.
I mean, what is it for Deion Sanders?
-Chris, just when think you've seen it all with Deion Sanders,
he takes it to the next level.
It's been a whirlwind 20 hours for the baseball star...
make that football star.
-Very few people could ever pull this off. Go for it.
It's an American dream,
playing both sports within a 24-hour span.
-Have some fun with it. -Good luck, Deion.
-Ludacris: Deion Sanders had needed more than luck
to get out of Miami that afternoon
and make it back to Pittsburgh for Game 5 of the NLCS.
He was running late after getting an I.V.
in the locker room, and then the helicopter
to Miami Airport was too heavy.
-Scearce: I think we had an extra person,
and then Deion was convinced that it wasn't safe
to take all of us in the helicopter,
took him and the team to the airport and came back for me,
which I think took an extra 20 minutes.
Deion wasn't gonna leave without me.
He expected a lot of the people around him,
but he also took care of them.
We took a charter flight back to Pittsburgh,
and then we took a helicopter from the Pittsburgh Airport,
over the City of Pittsburgh, and as close to the stadium
for the National League playoff as we could.
We were running behind, so we got to the Braves game
right at the beginning of the game.
-Announcer: Good evening, everybody,
and welcome to Pittsburgh for Game 5
of the National League Championship Series
between the Atlanta Braves and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
And certainly one of the most hotly debated subjects today
was what Deion Sanders did a good thing or a bad thing.
-He may not have started that game,
because if he showed up 17 minutes prior to the game,
Bobby's got to have a lineup, and he's got to make sure
the guys are gonna be there.
-Sanders: I was happy getting back into the uniform,
sliding in the dugout, and joking.
"Hey, I'm over here, man, if you need me."
You know, that was the ongoing joke
'cause I knew I wasn't gonna play.
It could've been everybody on the team
except for eight players could've got kidnapped,
and they wouldn't have put me out there as the ninth.
-McDonough: You wonder if the decision to bypass Sanders
here for Treadway is at all related
to the Atlanta management's obvious displeasure
with Deion's decision to go play for the Falcons today.
-Kasten: That's nothing John and I
would have weighed in on.
That was Bobby's province.
One writer said, "Hey, Stan,
you and I were going into
that game before Deion was."
-McCarver: John Schuerholz, the general manager, very upset.
-McDonough: Deion made the commitment to the Braves
before the postseason started that he would be with them
exclusively throughout the postseason,
and he went against that once the postseason began
for whatever his reasons are,
personal glory, his shoe contract?
-In the Bible, it says, "Turn the other cheek."
I hadn't got to that part yet.
-McDonough: When he gave the Braves his word
he was going to be theirs exclusively in the postseason,
that should supercede everything else,
even if it is a "dream" to play for two teams
in professional sports in one day.
As a youngster, [chuckles] I don't ever recall
having a friend of mine say, "It's my dream to play football
and baseball professionally in the same day."
-McCarver: Maybe one or the other, but not both.
-McDonough: That's right.
Another 3-2 pitch.
Chopped down to first.
The final score in Game 5, the Pirates, 7, and the Braves, 1.
-It could've been a time where kids could've said,
"You know what, man?
One day, I'm gonna do that.
One day, that would be awesome."
But you criticized it so ignorantly,
you made kids didn't...
didn't want to attempt to accomplish the feat.
-What's the balance?
They had their feelings.
You can't tell someone how to feel.
Tim McCarver dedicated his life to the game of baseball,
playing and broadcasting.
He caught for Bob Gibson.
He played and won in World Series.
He broadcast more than any broadcaster, World Series.
The fact that some guy would say,
"I'm going to play in a regular-season NFL game
for the Falcons,"
when the team that he was playing baseball for
had a great chance to advance not only to a World Series
but to win it,
he thought that that was besmirching the game.
I think, to the people in baseball,
they looked at it, and they thought,
"You know, this guy's not dedicated to this."
Would there be some guy who'd be playing in a Super Bowl
who would run off and play in a regular-season NBA game
the night before or that night?
I mean, come on.
-McDonough: And he's quickly in the hole here, 0-2.
-Ludacris: After being benched in Game 5,
Deion made it into Game 6 and 7 as a pinch hitter.
-McDonough: Guns him down. No, he didn't.
Pittsburgh, 2, Atlanta, 1,
with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th inning in Game 7
of the National League Championship Series.
He hacked at the 2-0. Now the 2-1.
Line drive and a base hit!
Justice will score the tying run.
Bream to the plate.
And he is safe! Safe at the plate!
The Braves go to the World Series!
[ Cheers and applause ]
-That feeling was good, man. It was exceptional.
Ain't like I contributed.
-Look out. There is big trouble here in the clubhouse.
[ Laughing ] Hang on here.
It's gotten ugly!
-Sanders: I saw them setting up the little situation
in the clubhouse, where they were interviewing the players
that really contributed, and I saw Tim McCarver in there.
I said, "Oh, yeah, that's the one, huh?"
When your mama call you after a game
and tell you how upset she was
that this man is talking about you like a dog,
profanity laced, but that's pretty much
how she summed it up...
Where I'm from, you handle it.
-Scene from a club this late...
-Pendleton: I remember Deion coming out of the training room
with a bucket of ice water.
And I'm kind of peeking like, "What is going on?
Where are you going with that?"
And then I heard him say, "Where's McCarver?"
And I went, "Oh, no."
-Where's he at? Where's McCarver? Where McCarver? Where he at?
-McCarver: McCarver's right here.
-Right there. Hey, I got something for you.
-You're a real man, you know that?
-Ohh!
♪♪
-It was like a legal form of assault
because it was in a moment of a "championship celebration."
-What I'm gonna do, go knock him out, go swing on him?
Then I'm going to jail. I ain't gonna do that.
I just wanted to bring him down a little bit.
I just wanted to cool him off a little bit.
-Where's he at? Where's McCarver? Where McCarver? Where he at?
-McCarver: McCarver's right here. -Right there.
-Hey, I got something for you. -You are a real man, you know that?
-Ohh!
-You are a real man, Deion, I'll say that.
-I am 'cause I did it in your face.
I didn't do it behind your back.
I came straight to the horse and fed him.
♪♪
-What he did to Tim McCarver was outright wrong.
It was despicable.
And when Tim stood there and said,
"You're a real man, Deion. You're a real man,"
that kind of said it all.
Telling the guy,
"Boy, if I were your age and this were going on,
things would be a lot different."
-I'm a reporter like you are.
I want to report. I don't want to be reported on.
And at 12:00 today, it's gonna be all behind me.
-If you're in the locker room celebrating with the team,
you're gonna get wet. Period.
-Would I look him right in the eye,
and if he publicly apologized, would everything be forgotten? Absolutely.
-Costas: What if he didn't publicly apologize?
What if he came up to you--
-Public event deserves a public apology.
Public event, private apology, won't work.
-So, even if he comes up to you man to man,
looks you right in the eye, and says,
"Tim, what I did was immature. I'm sorry,"
and extends his hand, what do you do?
-I'd shake hands with him, and I'd say,
"If you publicly apologize, as far as...
If you publicly apologize,
as far as I'm concerned, it's forgotten."
-Well, I haven't heard him apologize,
but I tell you what, get him.
Call him.
Bring him to me. I'll go to him.
Let's sit down and chop it up. Let's talk about it.
I apologize.
-Ludacris: Time may heal all wounds,
but not when it comes to Prime Time.
For Tim McCarver, Deion's offer
was too little, 26 years too late.
He had no interest in talking about the incident
and declined to be interviewed for this film.
-I don't use this word lightly...
He hates Deion.
And I'll tell you, 'cause I watched that.
It was sincere. I know Tim McCarver very well.
He gets in a rage, you know?
And I can't to him about anything else!
"Hey, how's it going, Tim? Hey, how's it going?"
"Oh, that Deion," and I'm sitting there like,
"Uh-huh. Yeah, I know."
And he just won't let it go.
-Ohh!
-You are a real man, Deion, I'll say that.
-Ludacris: Before the hair on top of Tim McCarver's head was dry,
another double-duty decision had to be made.
Game 2 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays
was set for October 18th in Atlanta.
Week 7 of the Falcons' schedule?
You guessed it, October 18th,
2,100 miles away in San Francisco.
-So, now you got to make a decision.
Do I go deal with them in San Francisco
and Jerry Rice,
or do I stay here and focus
on winning a World Series?
It's a big decision I had to make.
So, I did call a few of my teammates with the Falcons.
"Man, this is what I'm thinking. Tell me what you feel."
"We understand. We understand."
And that's how I made the decision.
-Announcer: Well, you know, Andre Rison
has to have Deion Sanders in his mind.
He certainly has him on his head.
-I had the rally cap going. It was a beautiful hat.
I wish I had that hat, man. My God.
How much that hat would go for right now, right?
We needed him just as much, but it was just as intriguing
and fun for us to say, "Hey, we got a teammate playing
Major League Baseball," too.
-What's Bobby Cox gonna do tonight for the Braves?
-Well, he'll make a change.
Deion Sanders is gonna bat second.
He'll be at the top of that Braves lineup.
-Thank God for David Cone.
Why am I thanking God for David Cone?
Because baseball is about numbers,
so they cannot justify me hitting .600
against David Cone, and I'm sitting on the bench.
So, I know this time is coming.
I'm like, "Yeah, I got you now, baby.
I got you now."
-McDonough: Well hit to right.
Base hit for Sanders.
-McCarver: And here he's been on base twice.
-McDonough: And running. The pitch a ball.
The throw. A one-hopper. Gets away from Lee.
Sanders heads to third.
And he's hobbling as he arrives at third base.
-Sanders: I was playing with a cracked bone in my foot,
but baseball, man, you can turn it on, turn it off.
Like, everything is a quick burst.
-Smoltz: The thing that blows my mind is when I see something
that you cannot possibly think can happen.
-McCarver: This is what speed on the bases does.
-Like, that really is one of them,
because I don't think people understand how hard that is,
and it's a testimony to, really, his athletic ability.
-He bats over .500 in that World Series.
I mean, he was clearly their most valuable player.
-Sanders: [ Rapping ] ♪ The next victim, "Tiny Tim" McCarver ♪
♪ You're jealous, look at the audacity to try to start ♪
♪ Controversy, said he wanted an apology ♪
♪ Those silly comments you makin' never bother me ♪
♪ I got an ego, yeah, man, that's what they all say ♪
♪ 'Cause the Prime played two sports in one day ♪
-McDonough: Sanders has a smile, as he has his second hit of the night.
-Ludacris: In just four games, Deion had a team-high 8 hits
in 15 at bats, a series-high .533 batting average,
and a series-high 5 steals on 5 attempts.
Oh, and he played a little defense, too.
-McDonough: Sanders plays it.
The throw to the plate, and he is...
out at home!
-[ Chuckles ] He was really good.
Wish the rest of us had been that good.
We'd have won it.
-McDonough: Timlin. Nixon bunts.
Timlin on it. Throws to first.
For the time in history,
the world-championship banner will fly north of the border!
The Toronto Blue Jays are baseball's best in 1992.
-Could you imagine if we had won,
and they had had to give me the MVP trophy?
[ Laughs ]
I would've Crip-walked over the...
[ Laughs ]
Oh, my God, I would've Crip-walked over there
to John Schuerholz, man, and just, I mean, just...
Oh, it would've been hilarious.
I wanted to win so bad just for that alone.
-Ludacris: The '92 baseball season was over.
Prime Time and Schuerholz agreed on a long-term,
full-time baseball contract in 1993,
but the animosity between them continued.
-It got to the point whereas he was playing
these little childish games.
"You're not gonna do this, you're not gonna play.
You're not gonna sign this contract, you're not gonna play."
Almost like you're forcing me to do something.
So, I said, "You know what?
You just paying me to play baseball, right?
All this hogwash with the fans
and shaking hands and holding babies,
that's not in my contract.
I'm here to play baseball. That's it."
-Man: That's good. Here you go, 1, 2, and 3.
[ Camera shutter clicks ]
-Pendleton: I know we had a conversation over
not being there for the luncheon.
John Schuerholz called him about it.
He said something to the effect of, "Why weren't you there?"
and something like, "Who do you think you are?"
or something to that effect, and Deion told him, he said,
"If you're not calling me about money, don't call my house,"
and he hung up the phone.
That's what Deion told me. [ Chuckles ]
And that was probably the tip of the iceberg,
and that's probably why Deion ended up in Cincinnati.
-Trade time for Prime Time.
Deion Sanders has been traded by the Atlanta Braves
to the Cincinnati Reds.
-Deion told writers in Atlanta
that he thought that it went back to the history
between him and Schuerholz, that John was a little upset
about some of the antics
during the World Series two years ago.
-John and I have talked about Deion Sanders
in the last 25 years, twice.
I mean, if that many times, you know?
So, I really don't know his feelings about it.
I like Deion, and we always thought that,
if he dedicated himself to baseball,
he would be an All-Star.
And having had him on our team for three years,
that opinion never changed.
The whole Deion Sanders experience
is pretty interesting
with the exception maybe of one weekend.
[ Chuckles ]
-Ludacris: And that was that in Atlanta.
Deion not only left the Braves in '94,
but also departed from the Falcons as a free agent.
No one ever played two sports at the same time again.
Why? Well, I told you we only had an hour.
[ Screech! ]
Hey, Deion, why don't you take us the rest of the way?
-Back when I was going through... life,
they said, "Could you explain the two sports?"
I said, "It's hard to love two things simultaneously."
One is need, and one is want.
Playing football is that thing, that security,
that thing that's gonna be there,
that thing that's gonna take care of you,
provide for you, support you, have your back.
Now, that other thing?
Ooh, she's a challenge, but she keeps you going.
She keeps you up. She's so enticing.
She causes you to want her.
She loves you.
-Man #1: Deion Sanders has agreed to terms verbally
with the San Francisco 49ers.
-Man #2: Super Bowl XXIX has come to a completion.
-Man #3: And they are the world champions.
-She wants you.
I'm so ready to play the game of baseball again.
It's not easy.
Because I wanted to love and secure both,
but, sooner or later, I had to come to the conclusion that,
"Baby, we've had a good run,
but she's the one."
Deion Sanders has officially made the decision
to be a Dallas Cowboy full time in 1996.
Man, this is my wife, man.
♪♪
-Announcer: Dallas, you can celebrate
because your Cowboys are world champions again.
-Hindsight... Hall of Fame.
[ Cheers and applause ]
To be continued.
So, I still have dreams to this day
of me playing baseball.
[ Cheers and applause ]
I still have those dreams.
Why?
Because I always think of,
"What if I would've married her?"
♪♪
What would it have been like?
♪♪
[ Helicopter blades whirring ]
I-I don't know if I could do any more.
-[ Laughter ] -I really don't know.
-Man: Take those glasses.
-Yeah. Hey, you know what?
I may get a role in a movie after this one, man,
'cause that, the Deion and Prime, that was...
I've never done that before.
Glasses on, glasses off.
That was really authentic.
That was gold.
-[ Laughing ] -That was great.
-God, that was good.
If my arms were long enough,
I would pat myself on the back right now.
Rewind that. Play that back.
Tweet it, Instagram it, do whatever.
That's some game.